Showing results by author "D. K. Holmberg" in All Categories

Having barely survived the Lands Beyond, Tolan recuperates while preparing for the next attack. His closest allies are gone, leaving him floundering for answers, along with his place in the Academy. Tolan must protect Terndahl, before the elementals attack. After years spent teaching others the elementals were no danger, he fears the repercussions of changing course. When even an elemental warrior might not be enough, Tolan must find the elemental nature within him.

The Chain Breaker series continues with The Paper Dragon. A dark power that attacks Yoran leads Gavin on a dangerous journey. Gavin remains in Yoran while struggling to master his El’aras abilities. With the power of the strange ring that grants him even more power, he knows he has to learn control, otherwise he’ll destroy the city while trying to protect it. When the hyadan, creatures of dark sorcery, come to the city, Gavin has to make a choice between staying to learn control over his power or helping Imogen.

The arrival of the mysterious Magi, along with their near invincible guardians, signals a change. For Jakob, apprentice historian, and son of a priest longing for adventure, it begins an opportunity. When his home is attacked, Jakob starts a journey that will take him far from home and everything he has ever known. Studying with a new swordmaster, he gains surprising skill, but also strange new abilities that make him fear the madness which has claimed so many has come to him.

The key to finding the one responsible for the attack on Terndahl involves crossing the waste, but is Tolan willing to risk the tenuous peace they've achieved for revenge? Now a master shaper, Tolan must serve the Academy, but he understands the risk his mother poses. While others want to study the power out on the waste, Tolan sees the need to look beyond Terndahl. His mother remains at large, and they still don’t know her ultimate goal.

Rsiran is a disappointment to his family, gifted with the ability to Slide. It is a dark magic, one where he can transport himself wherever he wants, but using it will only turn him into the thief his father fears. Forbidden from Sliding, he's apprenticed under his father as a blacksmith where lorcith, a rare, precious metal with arcane properties, calls to him, seducing him into forming forbidden blades. When discovered, he's banished, sentenced indefinitely to the mines of Ilphaesn Mountain.

Rsiran now understands that he can use not only the arcane power of lorcith, but also that of heartstone. This ability makes him powerful, perhaps too powerful for some. Others know of his ability and seek to use him. After Brusus is attacked, Rsiran makes a decision that requires an unlikely ally, and brings him to dangerous Thyr, where the Scholars of Venass offer their aid, but for a price. But the scholars want Rsiran for the same reason as the Forgotten.

After killing one of the Elvraeth to save his friends, Rsiran finds a measure of peace, but fears that it will be short lived. When attacked using knives he forged, he is pulled into a struggle that he wants nothing to do with. Worse, friends have secrets they do not share, secrets that could place both he and Jessa in danger. Finding answers sends him Sliding throughout the city and beyond, testing his ability all while trying to understand the secret of the alloy that might be the key to their safety.

Ashan has saved his homeland, but the threat from the king—along with Ashan's mentor—remains. The price for saving Berestal was high. His once recovered brother is now debilitated again, while his sister struggles to connect to Affelah, leaving Ashan to wonder what path he should take. When the king threatens the Wilds, Ashan must discover the truth of a land long ignored, as it might be the key to stopping the king and the spread of the dangerous power of the murtar.

Fresh off a victory against the Forgotten, and with unexpected allies, Rsiran knows that the war is far from over. An attack on someone close to him in the city leads to a search for answers, and he once again must confront the secrets hidden by his family. When he discovers a part of his people's history long forgotten, he realizes it might hold the key to what Venass really wants...and possibly the means to stopping them.

Trapped by Venass. Tormented by the Forgotten. And both desire the very ability that allowed his escape. Chased through the city by someone able to influence his Sliding, Rsiran and his friends prepare for the next attack, uncertain whether the Forgotten or Venass will move first. When Rsiran learns that his sister was abducted, he must decide whether to help a family that abandoned him. If he does not, Alyse might suffer a fate worse than any torment he has already endured.

Forced into the heart of the Aisl Forest, Rsiran and the guilds regroup and try to find a way to reclaim the city from Venass and the Elvraeth council. Rsiran has stopped the production of shadowsteel, but Venass still possesses dangerous weapons, and what's more, one of the great crystals remains missing. Forced into an alliance with the mysterious Carth in order to find the crystal, they make new allies and discover the means to reclaim the city, but will it be too late?

No longer forced to hide his ability, Rsiran now Slides openly throughout the city as he helps it recover from the recent attack. Requirements of his time continue to mount, not only as he tries to help his friends, but new responsibilities to the guild force him to interact with the Elvraeth, where he discovers the uneasy alliance that exists between the guilds and the council. When one of the great crystals goes missing, that alliance is tested, and the quest to find the crystal leads him to realize a secret long hidden.

The true spirit master remains at large. Tolan might be the only one able to stop him, but he must find the truth within himself first. The element bonds, for so long the primary way to reach the power of the elements, have been tainted. The threat Tolan has long feared has revealed himself but escaped before his plan could be stopped. Now, Tolan and his allies must travel beyond the waste to search for answers. The journey again takes him away from his teaching responsibilities.

Fresh out of prison, Jonathan Aguelon wants one big score before he leaves the city for good. The job will be more complicated than any that he's ever attempted, but this time he can steal more than money: He can get revenge—but only if he follows a mysterious benefactor’s plan. With the right team, Jonathan can succeed, but much in the city has changed during his time away, and the Dragon doesn't have the draw he once did. The team of outcasts he assembles needs time to prepare, but time is the one luxury they don’t have.

As a new student in the Dragon Academy, Ashan wants nothing more than to understand his connection to the dragons and to harness their power, but he might have come to learn of his power too late for him to use it. Attempts to harness the magic that burns within him haven't succeeded, and he's consoled knowing that if nothing else, he can learn to be a dragon rider.

Ashan has returned to the Vard lands, becoming what his people claim him to be: a traitor. Now that he's connected to the power of Affellah, the king will stop at nothing to bring him back. That includes attacking Ashan's home and those he cares about. Once again, he must leave the Vard lands before he can fully understand the power of Affellah. Saving his people has already meant betrayal. Can he still find a way to be their Servant?

Finn has grown into the role of executioner, taking on more responsibility with each passing year. After thwarting another plot against the kingdom, he’s developed a reputation - and the attention that comes with it. When attacked investigating missing women throughout the city, Finn finds his list of enemies growing. After another high profile abduction, Finn’s newfound skills are tested trying to find answers before it’s too late, but an imprisoned man speaking the strange language of the Alainsith forces Finn and Meyer to divide their work.

Having pulled off an impossible heist, Jonathan wants nothing more than to relax and take a few simple jobs as a distraction. But nothing is ever simple for the Dragon. When friends go missing, an old enemy returns, demanding Jonathan take a job even more dangerous than the last. If he refuses, new friends will suffer, but if he takes the job, Heziah may gain a power to overthrow the Society itself.

The kingdom has warred with the Vard long enough. Having gone with the Servant of the Vard, Ashan hopes to end that violence. First, he must find himself—even if it means coming to understand the strange Vard magic. When he finds an ancient and dangerous threat unlike anything he's ever encountered that once spread throughout the Vard lands, he begins to understand his enemy. As Ashan discovers the threat might still be active, he learns the truth behind the Vard actions and their hatred of dragons. What can he do if the threat has already spread to his people?

After stopping two attacks on the kingdom, Ashan yearns to master his connection to the dragons and finally serve as a dragon mage. He has connected to a cycle of dragons, but he's still only a student and doesn't understand what it truly means to be a dragon mage.